This blog is written by the National Director of Together For Humanity Foundation (TFH), Rabbi Zalman Kastel. It explores contemporary social issues as these relate to an Orthodox understanding of the Torah, (the Bible) and other Jewish sources. This blog which shares the personal thoughts and journey of an Australian Jewish man is part of the bridge building work of TFH and is written for readers of many faiths and none. It often references the Sidra, the weekly Torah reading.

Monday, March 25, 2013

This week
Jews will celebrate Passover marking the deliverance of freedom to the Hebrews
in ancient Egypt, which also links strongly to Easter. I was surprised to learn
that the story at the core of Passover also features in the Quran. At the heart
of the Passover story are undeniably powerful universal messages, not only the
right for freedom, but also about how cultures need to avoid the ‘us and them’
trap with particular relevance for Australia with its newly confirmed freedom to
offend.

I must
disclose that I am employed by a Christian-Jewish-Muslim diversity education
organisation. At my family Passover feast I will be telling of a Pharaoh that
at first resisted the dog whistle politics of division. The Pharaoh was quickly
removed in a leadership coup but reinstated when he showed a willingness to
portray the small community of Hebrews as an existential threat to the nation.
The contribution of the most prominent Hebrew, Joseph, was “not known” to Pharaoah,
or Firaun as the Quran calls him. Instead the Hebrews became the “other” that
needed to be managed.

The recently
released bi-partisan parliamentary Inquiry into Multiculturalism in Australia
reported that “despite majority comfort with diversity, 41 per cent of survey
respondents had a narrow view of who belongs in Australia”. In the work of the organisation I lead,
Together for Humanity, we have asked 60,000 young Australians to guess which
members of a panel typically consisting of a Muslim, a Jew and a Christian are Australian? The vast majority always assumes
that the Muslim is not Australian.

I recall the
year 11 student in Mudgee, who
confidently declared that anyone can
become an Australian (citizen) but to be an Aussie you had to have your BBQ in
front of your TV and wear thongs. And of course be White and Anglo Saxon. To
its credit the bi-partisan report gave prominent voice to the
multiculturalism-sceptics and included their concerns in a snap shot of
Australia’s response to diversity. In combating prejudice we need to honestly
explore the fears and assumptions we make if we are to develop thoughtful
resolutions to some of the problems we face.

A Lebanese
Muslim year 12 student we worked with some years ago, was recently asked to
fill in a question on a form about his identity. His teacher asked him, do you
see yourself as Lebanese? Australian? “It depends on the context, Miss” he
replied. This young man understands what many Australians don’t. Our identity
is multilayered.

In recent
days proposed strengthening of anti-discrimination legislation has been shelved
out of concern about freedom of speech. The freedom of an Australian to
replicate the Youtube video that ridiculed the prophet has been protected.
Perhaps this is the necessary price to protect freedom in general. It comes at
a high cost. I was deeply moved when talking about the US made film and its
aftermath with young Arabic Muslim students in Western Sydney. There was no
hostility or menace. Instead the young men quietly and politely expressed a
deep hurt about something so precious to them being desecrated and ridiculed

This
attitude of the young Muslims might especially annoy people who take religion
lightly, yet if we as a nation are serious about pluralism we need to find room
in our hearts for differences not just of belief itself but also how deeply held
it can be.

The
parliamentary report recognises that “freedom to maintain one’s cultural and linguistic
inheritance is an important factor in developing a confident sense of self and
a sense of belonging”. This is an important bi-partisan repudiation of the
assimilationist approach. There were probably some well-intentioned Egyptians
who insisted that the Hebrews were not really that different and it would all
be sorted within a few generations. Indeed, the Hebrews adopted some local
customs but other Egyptians must have recognised that the Hebrews clung to
their own language, distinctive dress and foreign sounding names and congregated
in Goshen. The report calls for greater interaction between people of different
beliefs and cultures, a view Together For Humanity strongly endorses and have
found highly effective. We hope we can
count on strong bi-partisan support in promoting just such interaction so that
we can all enjoy freedom within our great multicultural Australia.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

The
process for choosing a leader for the largest faith community in the world has
begun in Rome. I would like to think that what would be uppermost in the minds
of the selectors is identifying who is the most compassionate, most committed
to justice and charity, most devout, tolerant, spiritual, sensitive, wisest,
boldest, noblest visionary candidate. I would imagine there are other practical
qualities that are being considered seriously, such as something as mundane as
management skills for example. This is a good time to think about the role of
spiritual and moral leaders of significant faith or values based institutions
broadly and for me personally. In particular, beyond vision and guidance how
important are management skills to implement the vision and the ability to run
a compliant, accountable organisation? How much of a priority is to be still
and to contemplate? All of these issues are deemed to be important in the Torah
reading this week in the portions Vayakhel-Pekudei[1].

The first
conflict is between the priorities of action vs. stillness. Moses has a temple
to build and there is great excitement, should this activity pause for the
Sabbath rest? A robust argument could be made for action to take priority.
Surely, ‘since the temple symbolised God’s presence among the nation, its
creation should take precedence over the Sabbath. Perfection (would presumably)
lie in action rather than rest. Action seems a much more eloquent witness of faith
than merely the absence of work[2]’.
This argument is repudiated in God’s command to Moses in the midst of the
discussion about the temple that the Sabbath rest must be observed[3].
Lesson one inverts the famous action oriented saying to advise us: “don’t
just do something, sit there!”, at least for one day out of seven.

The
tension between institution building activity and quiet contemplation plays out
in a lovely Midrash that presents it as a conversation between the Sabbath and
God. The Sabbath says “Master of the World, you created me from (the time
of) the six days of creation and you sanctified me, now you are instructing the
Jews about matters of the tabernacle but my name you don’t mention. Perhaps,
out of the love Israel has for making the tabernacle they will desecrate me”.
Immediately, God turned to her and told Moses to write about the Sabbath in
this portion that deals with the work of the tabernacle to show that it’s
construction does not override the Sabbath …[4]”
I take this as a message that while “doing” and building is important, a
spiritual endeavour must include an emphasis on retreat and reflection.

While quiet time helps us stay true to ourselves, building
institutions is really important and exciting work that occupies many page of
the Exodus. After Moses went up on the mountain and was with God for forty days
and nights, not even eating or drinking[5]
as he received the law and the most amazing revelation at Mt Sinai, he goes on
to build a physical building to contain the vision, the relationship with God
and the message.

I think
Moses would have hoped this could be his focus, but this is not to be. He has
the scandal of the Golden calf. What an incredible let down, by the people he
was so committed to helping. These were the people who were meant to be on his
team. What have they done?! Yet this too is part of leadership, to support the
flock and be there for them in their struggles with their human frailties.

Photo by Mrs.
L. http://www.flickr.com/photos/nosmoking/

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic

(CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) Creative
Commons License.

After the
drama of the Golden Calf, Moses deserved a holiday. Instead he threw himself
into the construction of the Tabernacle. Yet, another challenging task was
still ahead of him, the extremely practical and mundane task of accounting for
the donations. Moses is focused on the following bits of information. “the
gold of the waving was twenty nine talents, seven hundred and thirty shekels in
the holy Shekel[6]The
silver of the community numbers was one hundred talents and one thousand seven
hundred and seventy five shekels in the holy Shekel. One hundred talents of the
silver were used for casting the sockets of the Holy and the sockets of the
dividing curtain; one hundred sockets out of one hundred talents, one talent
for each socket.And out of The one thousand seven hundred and seventy five
[shekels] he made hooks for the pillars, and he covered their tops and banded
them…” and on
and on it goes.

According
to commentary, a bookkeeping error meant that Moses was very worried about a 1775
shekel discrepancy which is the reason for the word “the” in the preceding
verse, after that particular bit of expenditure was identified. Moses was
elated when this accounting problem was solved[7].

This work
is not fulfilling or exciting yet it is required. Like Moses, I embrace it and
accept the great importance of doing right and being seen to be doing right.
The compliance, governance and audit responsibilities all come with the
territory and are part of the sacred work. Once these are attended to, other
matters of worship and vision can be realised. This is as true for me as it is
for the next pope.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

My wife and I were blessed with a baby daughter last Friday, after
having five sons. In Jewish teachings there is a connection between the name
and character[i]. In
selecting a name for our daughter we wanted something distinctive but
traditional that would connect her to a biblical role model. Personally, I was
also concerned about the way that women are often thought of as the wife of
this great person or the mother of another, rather than a person in their own
right. I also don’t like the way some girls’ names reflect a view of girls
being pretty little things rather than full human beings. Traditionally one
consideration in selecting a name is to honour and remember family members, but
with four grandmothers between the two parents, we could not honour all of
them.

Shifra – Heroic Career woman or Mother?

One strong female characters in the Torah is the Egypt-wide chief midwife
for Hebrews[ii]
Shifra, who along with her colleague Puah defies the Pharaoh when he commands
them to murder the Hebrew male babies[iii].This courageous choice is the first and
perhaps the only example of civil disobedience that resists racism in the
Torah. The name is also related to the Hebrew word Shfoferet, a tube
because Shifra would resuscitate babies who had stopped breathing by blowing
through a tube[iv]. While
many sources identify Shifra as being Jochebed, the mother of Moses[v],
other texts identify her as a convert[vi],
and as an Egyptian[vii],
whose children or husband remains unknown and irrelevant to her identity, just
as they are absent in a plain reading of the Torah text itself.

I wonder about what message there is in the commentary that links
Shifra with Jochebed. Is it about the greatness of Moses’ lineage, or
reflecting a view that a great and complete woman is not just one who interacts
with a monarch and defies him but also one who is a mother as well? There is a
moving prophecy that reassures men who have no children “let not the eunuch
say, "Behold, I am a dry tree”. For so says the Lord to the
eunuchs who will keep My Sabbaths and will choose what I desire and hold fast
to My covenant, "I will give them in My house and in My
walls a place and a name, better than sons and daughters; an everlasting name I
will give him, which will not be discontinued[viii]."
Surely we can read this passage as saying there is a value to a woman
beyond motherhood. Equally, I ask myself whether my own interest in the less prominent
commentaries that could be interpreted as positioning Shifra as a career woman
rather than a mother reflects a lack of recognition of the importance of
motherhood for women and its contribution to the wellbeing of children and to
society generally.

To be Named Or Not to be Named

Our daughter’s second and third names were given to her to be named
after my paternal grandmother Golda Kastel A.H.[ix]
and my wife’s maternal grandmother Bracha Stark A.H., both very strong women
who managed to both support their husbands and shine as people in their own
right.In selecting two grandmothers, we
highlighted two out of four.

The issue of whether names are acknowledged or not mentioned is a significant
one in the Torah reading, Tetzaveh [x],
which was read on the Shabbat on which our daughter was named. The special
clothing worn by the high priest in the temple worship included diamonds in
which the names of each of the twelve tribes of Israel were engraved “before
God, on his two shoulders, as a remembrance”[xi].
The names would also be carved a second time into twelve precious stones on a
breastplate worn by the high priest[xii].

The opposite side of the equation is also found in this portion. It is
the only portion in the Torah that occurs during the life time of Moses[xiii],
where he is not mentioned. According to commentary this reflects a selfless
choice by Moses, in which he offers a desperate plea to God to forgive the Jews
for the sin of the Golden Calf. Moses says to God, “And now, (God)
forgive their sin, and if not, erase me
please from Your book (the
Torah) that You wrote[xiv].”While God essentially
forgives his people, the words of Moses about being erased from the “book” are
still partially fulfilled in his absence from this portion[xv].

Not Named But Still Present

The absence of Moses’ name in the Torah portion does not
mean he is not present. One way of thinking about it is that his role is more
of a background role. Moses might have felt disappointed when, as the sanctuary
for God begins to come together, the prominent roles are filled by others - Betzalel
is the architect and chief designer while Aaron will perform the key rituals.
Where is Moses in all this? To comfort him, without altering the reality of his
less overtly prominent role, God tells Moses three times “and you[xvi]” will command the people relating to the olive oil, draw Aaron close
and instruct the designers of the priestly clothing. The Torah has a special
tune or accent in which it is traditionally read, with louder and longer
pitches or intonation for emphasis, all three times the words “and you” have
these strong accents[xvii]. Suggesting the importance of
Moses’ role in the sanctuary, the spiritual illumination symbolized by the oil
and the worship by Aaron[xviii].

Applying the same principle to our question of the names
not given to our daughter, I think our daughter can draw strength and
inspiration from the two grandmothers after whom she has not been named. Their
lives, character, choices and guidance have indirectly helped shape the person
she will become, by their parenting of Shifra’s own grandparents.

Conclusion

Names matter. Names can mean a lot of different things,
depending on how they are interpreted. The name Shifra also means beautiful or
to make beautiful, for example. I trust that our Shifra Golda Bracha will find
her own way to construct her identity and draw some strength from great women
and men who came before her. This will involve prioritising between public and
private roles, at home and/or at work. It will also require recognition that
recognition itself is far from the only criteria of value. As my third “honorary
grandmother” Stella Cornelius used to say “you can accomplish a lot if you
don’t care who gets the credit”. Welcome to our world, Shifra Golda Bracha
Kastel.

[i] There
is a story told about a student at the House of Torah study whose name was
Chatfa which means to grab. After something went missing in the Yeshiva, this
student wiped his wet hands on another student’s clothes, which showed a lack
of respect for the property of others.When he was confronted about this he admitted to the theft. This
vindicated the view of Rabbi Meir about the link between names and character. I
have been unable to find the source of this story.

[vii]
Midrash Tadsheh, end Chapter 1 21, Imre Noam, Paaneach Raza, R. Y. of Vienna,
the latter two suggest it is would be implausible for the Pharaoh to demand
Jewish midwives murder the babies because according to Jewish law one must be
prepared to sacrifice one’s life rather than take an innocent life, all cited in Torah Shlaima, p.38

About Me

I am active in educational efforts to counter prejudice, particularly when linked to religion, as National Director of Together For Humanity Foundation. I am also a Rabbi, teaching Bar Mitzvah students, adults, conducting weddings and involved in other aspects religious leadership. I was ordained with Semicha from the Lubavitch Yeshiva (770) in New York, studied Torah in London, Brooklyn and Sydney. Completed a graduate Diploma in Education at the University of New England.